Ibuprofen Usage Is Hurting Your Boys And More

Are you an ibuprofen user or do you just push through the pain, fever, and inflammation? I'm one of those stubborn males that don't like to take anything, i.e. ibuprofen, aspirin, cough medicine, anything. Give me a good bourbon and I'll be all set.

Could my negativity toward pain relievers been saving my boys as well as my heart? And here I was worried about steroids.

Concern has been raised over increased male reproductive disorders in the Western world, and the disruption of male endocrinology has been suggested to play a central role. Several studies have shown that mild analgesics exposure during fetal life is associated with antiandrogenic effects and congenital malformations, but the effects on the adult man remain largely unknown. Through a clinical trial with young men exposed to ibuprofen, we show that the analgesic resulted in the clinical condition named “compensated hypogonadism," a condition prevalent among elderly men and associated with reproductive and physical disorders. In the men, luteinizing hormone (LH) and ibuprofen plasma levels were positively correlated, and the testosterone/LH ratio decreased. Using adult testis explants exposed or not exposed to ibuprofen, we demonstrate that the endocrine capabilities from testicular Leydig and Sertoli cells, including testosterone production, were suppressed through transcriptional repression. This effect was also observed in a human steroidogenic cell line. Our data demonstrate that ibuprofen alters the endocrine system via selective transcriptional repression in the human testes, thereby inducing compensated hypogonadism. - pnas.org

That wasn't too bad to understand, was it? Now I'm not too worried about the boys and their production of my swimmers. They have no use for me or anyone in the future.

The impaired fertility was not the issue within "compensated hypogonadism." What was the concern was that along with slower swimmers, compensated hypogonadism, basically dysfunctional testicles, is also associated with depression and an increased risk for heart failure and stroke.

As always, with any health concerns, consult with your doctor if there are things troubling you and your boys. The study said brief usage was acceptable and affects were reversible, but maximum strength for prolonged periods of time were the worst.